The former top politician of the Carinthian Freedom Party Kurt Scheuch can breathe a sigh of relief: he was able to credibly explain to the jury that although he had controversial runes on his property – “I really have nothing to do with National Socialism!”
I’m just a farmer from the Mölltal valley,” says Kurt Scheuch during the trial before the regional court of Klagenfurt. “A normal citizen who has never had much to do with National Socialism.” Apparently not in the 25 years as a top politician of the PVV – in the state government of Carinthia, in the National Council, in the Federal Council. Yet he did not know that there are runes that are banned as Nazi symbols. Incidentally, since 1947. Three controversial old Germanic characters graced his garden fence, others on a residential tower he built when he was still a politician.
“Since I was 15, I’ve dealt with runes a lot,” says the 56-year-old – and he proves it by taking off his shoes in front of the jury. “Even there I have a wolf rod. It means happiness to me. I like runes, I use them often and with pleasure.” In any case, he has absolutely nothing to do with reactivation, the green politician Olga Voglauer accused at the request of the senior prosecutor in Graz. “Of course I reject National Socialism,” he emphasizes. Judge Sabine Götz asked the key question: “Three such runes on a fence – why such an interesting accumulation?” Scheuch sighs and sees himself misunderstood, even the word “witch trial” is mentioned.
His lawyer Christian Leyroutz also locates a political charge in a precisely worded plea, as the higher authorities intervened after the Klagenfurt public prosecutor’s office had already wanted to drop the case. “You don’t have to be a conspiracy theorist to deduce something – also because the indictment became known three days before the Carinthian state elections.”
Without “inner act”
In any case, Leyroutz and Scheuch succeeded in convincing the jury that the former politician had not broken the prohibition law and that there was no “inner factual side”, as it is called in legal German, when someone could do something. but wouldn’t. it to think so or even accept criminal liability. However, the results of the vote were very close: of the eight lay judges, four found Scheuch innocent, four found him guilty; in the event of a tie, an acquittal will follow. It is still unclear whether the public prosecutor’s office will take action.
Source: Krone
I am Ida Scott, a journalist and content author with a passion for uncovering the truth. I have been writing professionally for Today Times Live since 2020 and specialize in political news. My career began when I was just 17; I had already developed a knack for research and an eye for detail which made me stand out from my peers.
